Star-Crossed
by Panoctu
Summary: It's Judy's first Valentine's after Nick came back from the ZPA... and the doe is spending it without Nick? Is there a way for the bunny to salvage it or will she spend this special day without the mammal she loves?


**A/N:  
** I have no fancy chocolates to offer, nor can I hand you lovely flowers. But I have prepared this story just for you.  
I guess, what I want to tell you this way is, I... I... well, I love you... WildeHopps. 

* * *

She had forgotten about it. Totally and entirely banished it from her mind. It had taken two of her littermates and another sister of hers from an older litter to make her finally realize it.

"Today is Valentine's day?!" Judy exclaimed with incredulity.

"Wait, you didn't just catch up on that now, did you?" the black doe on the screen asked in disbelief, shaking her head.

"Oh come on, Cassie. You act as if I had ever cared about this day before."

"I know, I know," her sister replied. "You were never interested in dating when you were younger. So focused on becoming a police officer. But you _have_ already accomplished that goal. And there is also that partner of yours you are always talking about. Tell me you do not have a thing for him, JuJu."

The grey bunny suddenly felt very hot under her fur and she started to nervously wriggle around on her place on the floor, in front of the couch, where she had ended up after aimlessly moving from one spot inside the apartment to another.  
She had been looking for something - anything - to relieve her boredom until the first of her littermates had called her, causing the doe to flop down just then and there to talk with her.

"Sorry, Cassie, I totally forgot that I had something to do today. Talk to you later?"

Rolling her eyes, the black-furred mammal on screen answered with a stoic expression.  
"Uh huh, sure. Whatever you say, Sis."

Ending the call, Judy put her phone aside, laid her head down on the coffee table in front of her and groaned.

It was true that she had never cared about Valentine's before.

She had always been _'that weird doe who wants to become a police officer'_ despite everyone knowing that there was no way a bunny could join the ZPD. _Ever._

So boys had stayed away from her.

Not that she had minded at all. She never had the time to spare a thought for dating anyway while working her tail off, learning for school and later training _and_ studying for the academy.  
Though her sister was right. She had reached her goal by now.

And she was right about Nick as well.

As difficult as it had been at first for Judy to admit it to herself, but she had fallen in love with the reynard.  
Hell, there was no way she couldn't have.

... well, okay, in the beginning she had despised the arrogant, cynical conmammal who had put a spoke in her wheel whenever he could and belittled her for being a small bunny with a big dream, like everybody else.

But he had also been the first mammal in this city to stand up for her.

More than that, he had been the first mammal in her life to actually believe that she was capable of being a cop.  
Neither her boss nor her fellow officers nor her family had been standing behind her the way he did.  
As much as she loved her parents and siblings, even they had thought she was wasting her time. And once she had passed the ZPA, they had tried to convince her to quit or at least to apply for a safer position in the ZPD's administrative department or to just stay a mere meter maid.

Not Nick, though.

As soon as he had started to see the truth; realized what she was going through and how she was treated by the mammals who were supposed to be on her side, he even confronted Bogo on her behalf. Without him, she wouldn't be a cop anymore.

Without him, she might not even be alive anymore, considering the events that had occurred in the natural history museum later on.

So, yes, she was _'having a thing for him'_ like Cassie had stated it so eloquently.

Or one could say she was ears over tail in love with him.

Why had she still missed out on the fact that it currently was Valentine's? For the first time in her life she cared about it; had someone she would have loved to spend it with, and yet...

The answer, Judy thought to herself, was quite easy: she had been spending every day with the tod since Nick came back from the ZPA as a fully-fledged police officer and her new partner.  
They were together during work. They were together during their free time.  
For carrot's sake, since almost three months they were even roommates after deciding that looking for an apartment closer to work and each paying half of the rent was the wise thing to do.

Not much had changed after that.  
They were sharing all their meals, spending all their time together and only parted ways to sleep in their own bedrooms.

Okay, well, it was just the _slightest_ bit exciting to know that the one she loved was dreaming in the next room, merely separated by two doors.

Or one wall.  
After all, Judy's acute ears were able to pick up the tod's breathing through it without focussing much.

And today of all days she had to have a day off while Nick was working.

Inwardly, she cursed Bogo.

The cape buffalo had ordered her to use up some of her vacation, arguing that it kept accumulating since she seemed to have a heartfelt aversion towards staying at home.  
Even more so, he had been the one who commanded her to take this one off, as a way to _'make it easier for her to get used to it.'_

Tears slowly welled up.  
The thought that the first Valentine's after Nick came back from the ZPA was the first time she couldn't spend with the tod felt like a poor omen.

Wiping at her eyes quickly, a sigh escaped her lips.

If that were her only source for doubt, it probably wouldn't present much of a problem. She could still try to salvage the rest of the day once Nick would come home.

But there was another dilemma.  
The doe had no idea how he felt about her.

Calling him 'Slick' wasn't coming from anywhere.  
The reynard was usually so difficult to read that even Judy wasn't sure at times what he was thinking.  
She had been able to tear down some of the walls he had built around himself, to protect himself from getting hurt again like he had been when he was younger. Yet there was still so much she didn't know about the red fox.

And the fact that he was usually bantering with her, equally teasing and flirting, but never appeared to make serious approaches to her wasn't helping either.

Her gaze flickered back towards her phone.

There was her family to consider as well.

While the sisters she had been talking to today had been dropping hints - which Judy was only now realizing had been there - that they were accepting and even supporting her in case she and Nick were a couple, she couldn't say for sure if they were serious about it or just pulling her leg, not actually believing anything was going on between the vulpine and their sister.

And her parents...

Just when thinking about them, her phone started to ring, the screen showing an incoming MuzzleTime call from 'Mom & Dad.'

For the briefest of moments, the bunny pondered the idea of throwing the device out of the window and hiding under her blanket.

The only thing that would accomplish, though, would be to cause her parents to go into full panic mode, doing Frith knows what to contact her and find out if she was alright.

So with a final deep inhale, Judy put on what she thought was her most convincing 'look-at-me-I'm-happy' smile and swiped at the screen.

"Mom. Dad. Hi. How come you are calling?"

"Hey, Jude-the-Dude. We were just so excited when we heard it-" the brown buck was almost vibrating on the spot, true to his words before his wife was cutting him short.

"We are not interrupting you two, are we? Oh, I'm so sorry, Sweetheart. We were calling you without thinking," the doe stated worriedly.

"I... we... what?" Judy was looking at her phone like it was prone to explode any moment, confusion written all over her face.

"Calm down, please. What have you heard? What do you mean by 'interrupting you two'? Why are you calling?" The bunny's nose was twitching with her wondering what for cabbage's sake was going on and how her day could possibly be turned more upside down.

A wide smile appeared on her mom's face, the older doe chuckling slightly.  
"Oh, it's just that we heard some of your sisters talking about how you had taken a day off today so you could spend Valentine's with Nicholas, and we were curious what you two have planned. Though I wish you would have told us before that you two were going out already. But we are so happy for y-"

"Wait! Stop! You are wrong," Judy intervened, her free paw flailing around frantically.

Their daughter's sudden exclamation caused the two older rabbits to pause, identical looks of surprise appearing on their faces.

"Sweety, it's okay, really," Bonnie tried to calm Judy down, thinking the young grey bunny was merely embarrassed. "We understand that it must have felt like you couldn't tell us and we don't blame you. Not after everything we used to say about predators and especially about foxes."

"That's not it," Judy asserted. "Nick and I aren't a couple. And I didn't even realize which day it was until talking with my sisters. I just took today off because Chief Bogo had ordered me to reduce accrued vacation days and... wait."

From one moment to the next, her drooping ears were shooting up, standing rigidly when she turned her mom's words over in her mind.

"Did you said you two are happy for me? You mean, it would be okay for you guys if Nick and I would be dating?"

Exchanging a quick glance, Bonnie and Stu nodded in unison.

"Of course we would," the doe stated.  
"As long as you are happy," the buck added.

Judy's slack-jawed expression lasted long enough for both older rabbits to start worrying until she finally spoke again.

"You... you wouldn't mind that he is a predator... a fox? That it would be an interspecies-relationship?"

The uneasy expression on her mom's face softened before vanishing entirely, replaced by regret.

"Oh, Sweety. We have accepted you for the unique mammal you are. Please believe me. What we did to you... how we acted when you joined the ZPD... we are so sorry for that. And whatever you decide to do with your life, whoever you will fall in love with and choose for a mate, we will trust you and support you. We can promise you that."

Bonnie looked at her daughter pleadingly, hoping she would understand how much they regretted the times they had tried to discourage her from pursuing her dream.

"Also," Stu added, quickly wiping at his eyes in an attempt to stall the waterworks that were about to break loose, "Nicholas is a great guy. I can see that, not only from the things you've told us about him."  
The buck was referring to the numerous times Nick had joined their conversations on MuzzleTime. Since he and Judy had become roommates, it was almost inevitable that the tod was appearing on screen in the background or could be heard from some other part of the apartment.  
It had turned out that he didn't mind at all spending some time to tell the older rabbits everything about the megacity their daughter was living in and listening to them going on and on about Bunnyburrow and the great life of a farmer and that he should tag along the next time Judy was coming home.

...

In hindsight, Judy should have known that her parents wouldn't be too reluctant to accept that she had feelings for the fox.

The doe's tense muscles loosened up, feeling like a burden had been lifted from her shoulders.

"Thank you. Really, hearing you say that makes me very happy." An honest smile accompanied her words, though it vanished the next moment.

"But Nick and I really aren't a couple."

"But you _do_ love him." It wasn't a question Bonnie asked but merely a statement.

Feeling her ears heating up, Judy quickly let them drop, trying to hide the blush behind her back.  
Her gaze was flickering back and forth between her phone's screen where her parents were patiently waiting for her answer and an infinitesimally small scratch on the table that was magically drawing her eyes to it.

Deciding that her parents deserved an honest answer after owning up to their past mistakes, she swallowed her embarrassment, focused back on them and nodded in confirmation.

"Yes. I do love him. And yet I'm unable to spend this day with him."  
Saying it out loud, she felt her throat tightening and quickly blinked a couple of times.

"But you will see him today, won't you?" Bonnie asked in an attempt to cheer her daughter up.

Another nod was the grey doe's answer.

"In that case, you just have to be patient. I'm sure everything will work itself out in the end," the older female assured her with a confident smile.

Mimicking her dad's earlier gesture, Judy quickly swiped the moisture from her eyes before shooting her parents a smile of her own.

"Thank you, guys. I already feel a lot better after talking to you two. And... _thank you._ "

Picking up the meaning of the second thanks their daughter gave them, Bonnie and Stu regarded her with identical, fond expressions.

Before they said their goodbyes, Judy had to promise to call them the next day and tell them how it had turned out.

Putting her phone aside, a long sigh escaped the bunny's lips.  
Talking to her parents had alleviated some of her sorrows, but it had also been just a tad tiring.

And there was still the problem that Nick wouldn't be home before five at the earliest, leaving her with a little over four hours to kill.

While still wondering what to do with so much time without going crazy, her phone rang once more, making her wonder if someone out there or above her was reading her mind, playing games with her.

Looking at the caller ID, Judy wasn't sure if she should laugh or cry.

The doe reclined, her head coming to rest against the couch's edge with her ears splaying out on the seat cushion. Closing her eyes, she accepted the call, wondering what that specific mammal might want from her.

"Hey, Vivian."  
"Hello, Judy," came the vixen's cheerful reply.

Vivian Wilde - Nick's mother - had taken an immediate liking to the grey bunny, not least because it had been Judy who had invited the red fox to her son's graduation ceremony.

Admittedly, Nick had at first reacted like she had betrayed him, sneaking around his back like that.  
But soon his mask had crumbled, letting his true colors shine through. The tod had felt guilty, haunted by the fear his mom wouldn't want to see him anymore and ridden with self-loathing for leaving her without so much as a word in the first place when he had still been a teenager.

But Vivian had embraced her son, holding him tightly while trying to convey her happiness that way since she wasn't able to say a word through her joyful tears of having her kit back and finding that he had changed his ways.

Judy was like a daughter to her for everything she had done for her family. So it wasn't that unusual for her to call the doe every now and then.  
Though the bunny had a hunch that idle chatter wasn't the reason the vixen wanted to talk to her now.

And sure enough, her next words made Judy groan inwardly.  
"I heard you had today off," the red fox stated, making Judy wonder if another talk like she had with her own parents was coming.

Bracing herself for the unavoidable, she already had the denial at the tip of her tongue, ready to tell Vivian no, she wasn't dating her son.

"And since Nick is at work, I thought you might want to go out for lunch?"

"No, I'm not... wait, what?" interrupting herself before she said something stupid, the doe quickly backpaddled on her words.

The vixen's question had been so unexpected, Judy almost missed that it wasn't the one she had waited for.

"Lunch? You? Me? Somewhere out in the city?" Vivian summed her question up with a laugh.

"Nick told me you were prone to go crazy out of boredom once left to your own devices, so he asked me to keep an eye on you. Just to make sure you are not going crime-solving all on your own, tearing down half of Zootopia while you are at it. His words, not mine," she added with an audible smirk.  
At least to the doe it was audible. She had met Mrs. Wilde for a couple of times by then, finding her to be almost as versed in the art of teasing as her son was.

"Oh. OH, yes. Lunch. I'd like that. Thanks," Judy quickly caught up, gratefully accepting the offer. It would probably be a good way to spend some time until Nick would be off the clock, and she always enjoyed talking to the kind vixen. Especially since whenever they met it turned out that Vivian had yet one more sweet or at least embarrassing story to tell about her son.  
Much to the tod's dislike.

"But just to make it clear, Nick is - as always - exaggerating," Judy added, ignoring the inner voice reminding her that only five minutes ago she was wondering how she could survive the day without going stark raving mad.  
A voice that sounded suspiciously like a certain fox to her.

Agreeing on a time and the restaurant they would meet up at, Judy ended the call. With some time to spare she decided to take a quick shower to get rid of her remaining bed-fur and look presentable.

About forty minutes later the two females entered a small diner - a widely smiling vixen with a slightly uncomfortable looking bunny doe next to her.

Judy was still expecting Vivian to bring up Valentine's or start asking questions about the nature of her son's relationship with her.  
But when none of it happened for a while, Judy gradually relaxed, scolding herself for being paranoid after the conversations she had had with her family.

No, she was talking with Vivian about work, the weather that had gotten marginally warmer over the last couple of days, the bunny's family and kithood back in Bunnyburrow and - much to Judy's glee - _Nick's_ kithood.  
The vixen managed to sweeten that particular part of their conversation by producing some old pictures from the reynard when he was still a little toddler.  
That she was carrying them with her was pure coincidence, of course.

After paying their tabs, Judy was about to take her leave, but Vivian asked her if she would be interested in visiting a flea market that was held nearby, stating that it was always interesting to see the kind of things that popped up there, even if they wouldn't buy anything.

Seeing no harm in it, the doe was quick to agree, happy about the chance to spent more time in pleasant company while also shortening the span until Nick would be off duty.

A brief ride on the sub and a short walk later and they strolled amongst stands with curiosities, trinkets, toys, clothes, ' _one hundred percent authentic'_ DVDs and jewelry, and other knick-knacks of any kind.

With the market a little smaller than anticipated, they left just under an hour later and while Vivian hadn't bought anything, Judy was looking at the tiny, plushy fox-head keychain she had found.

"And here I thought having my son around almost twentyfour-seven would be enough fox for you," the vixen teased goodnaturedly, chuckling slightly at the blushing doe.

"Yeah, but that one tends to annoy the carrot-picking daylights out of me at times," the doe quickly shot back with a laugh, trying to cover her embarrassment before pocketing her new acquisition.

She barely had time to wonder if the red fox had something else planned for today when Vivian asked to accompany her to go shopping.

Judy didn't fancy the idea, not like many of her sisters would who could go on and on about clothes, purses, and whatnot.

Not wanting to put the vixen's nose out of joint after she had tried and succeeded in lifting her mood, she agreed nevertheless, hoping it wouldn't bore her to death.

When they arrived at one of the biggest shopping malls of Zootopia located in Downtown, to Judy's surprise the shop the vulpine lead them to wasn't a boutique of any kind.

"I never knew you liked hiking, Vivian," the bunny exclaimed upon spotting the shop sign that read 'Wanderlust'.

Their assortment ranged from foot protection and clothing for every kind of terrain and weather, via backpacks and outdoor cooking-gear through to tents and sleeping bags.

Stepping through the door designated for small mammals, the vixen entered the section of the shop which offered a selection of products that was the right size for them, with Judy right behind her and looked around in excitement.  
"I used to when I was quite some years younger. And recently...," she hurried over to a shelf with lightweight plates and bowls made of stainless steel, "... recently I feel like giving it another try. Maybe you and Nick would like to tag along?"

The vixen looked back over her shoulder, regarding the grey doe who sported a wide smile.

"I'd love to. I haven't been hiking since I was a little kit and my dad took me along one summer with some of my brothers. But I'm not convinced Nick would be too thrilled about that idea." The bunny looked almost apologetic.

With a grin, Vivian turned around fully, putting one paw to her face in a way that said 'Oh my, what can we do' before stating: "Well, in that case, we simply have to come up with something to convince him with. Or to blackmail him."

Judy acted like she was contemplating the idea before a wide smirk of her own nearly split her face. "I like that. And I can probably come up with something."

Both females burst into laughter before continuing to browse through the shelves.

Meanwhile, a male red fox sitting in a ZPD cruiser's passenger seat felt a sudden shiver run down his spine, causing the wolf driving to give him a strange look out of the corner of his eye.

By the time Judy and Vivian were about to leave the store, the doe realized that Nick would be done with his work in less than fifteen minutes, making her spirits rise even more... along with her nerves.

That was the reason she almost jumped straight into the air when her phone started to ring.

Looking at her screen, she saw the picture she had set for Nick. It showed her clinging to the tod, a wide, overdone smile on her face and a slightly annoyed one on the reynard's as she had jumped into a selfie he had made at that time.

Judy accepted the call, feeling her heart flutter in her chest.

"Hey, Slick. Are you clocking out early or do you just wanted to hear m-"

"I'm sorry, Carrots. Bogo asked me to do a double shift. When digging deeper into a case, we found that there was a lot more going on behind the scenes than we thought. I will probably not make it home today. So, I guess we will see each other not earlier than tomorrow evening since I'll have the day off instead."

While the tod was talking, Judy's ears dropped lower and lower, her expression suddenly forlorn and her posture defeated.

"Oh... I see. W-well, nothing we can do about it, right? Then I'll... I'll see you tomorrow. Bye."

Pocketing her phone again, the doe didn't move from the spot.  
With her head hanging low and her gaze glued to the ground, looking at nothing, she felt like she was about to cry.  
That whole day hadn't been anything like she had expected it to be. Neither the quiet day of boredom she thought it would be upon waking up nor the stressful endurance test for her nerves she readied herself for when she decided to make this Valentine's a special one; one that would count.

When a paw gently landed on her shoulder, she jerked out of her thoughts and slowly raised her gaze, meeting Vivian's green eyes.

The vixen's expression was knowing and full of sympathy when she gave her a small, comforting smile.

Judy wiped at her eyes when her vision started to get slightly blurry and suddenly felt herself being pulled into an embrace by the vulpine in front of her.

After a moment of reluctance, she returned the hug, feeling her troubled mind calm down a bit.

When she let go of the red fox, Vivian chuckled a little. "So emotional, just like Nicky told me."

The unexpected comment made even the dejected doe snort in amusement, though it didn't do much to lift her spirits.

Obviously, that hadn't gone unnoticed by the vixen who stood up and seemed to contemplate something before addressing Judy.

"Do you want to see a favorite spot of my son's which he used to visit whenever he needed something to lift his mood?"

The doe hesitated for merely a second before deciding that if she couldn't see the reynard himself, maybe she could feel a little closer to him that way, and agreed to go there.

This time, it took them a little longer than when they headed for the flea market, giving Judy some time to calm down without the need to focus on anything around her.  
When they reached their stop, Vivian gently pried the bunny out of her thoughts.

By the time they arrived at their destination, which turned out to be a hillside park, the sun had started to set, painting the sky in hues of yellow, red and orange.

Letting her eyes wander, Judy could understand why Nick liked that place so much.  
At a first glance, it seemed to be a rather small park, but when she got closer to the edge of the hill she realized that it didn't simply ended there. Instead it was going down in multiple layers, with each layer protruding a little further from beneath the previous one, giving it the image of giant steps covered in grass, trees and the occasional bench.  
A narrow path that clung to the hillside led down the length of each level, connecting them with the next one below and creating a meandering band that, once it reached the lowest step of the park, split in two to frame the pond that was located there.

Since the closest buildings were positioned a little below the bottom level, the view over the city that revealed itself to the visitors was more or less unhindered, no matter on which level you decided to stop and let your gaze wander.

Judy felt calmer just looking at the scenery, the lightest smile pulling at her lips.

"Thank you for showing me this, Vivian." The doe turned towards her vulpine companion, just to find her standing some distance away.

"Enjoy it," the vixen replied with a wink, before turning around, heading back into the direction of the sub-station and leaving a very confused grey rabbit behind.

Just before she lost sight of Judy, Vivian glimpsed a red-furred mammal stepping out from behind a tree.

 _Don't you dare make that sweet girl cry again, Nicky,_ she thought to herself, deciding to still give him a proper chewing out later.

Meanwhile, the tod had stepped up behind Judy.  
When he cleared his throat, the doe's ears swiveled around, immediately followed by her head.

Eyes widening in surprise, the bunny couldn't believe who was standing there, right in front of her, and not in his uniform but casual clothes.

"Nick? But... but I thought...?"

The reynard smiled at her apologetically. "I know, and I'm sorry. I swear I'll explain. But for now, just come with me, please."

Caught off guard by the sudden appearance of the mammal she had wanted but hadn't expected to see today anymore, she could only nod, feeling slightly numb while following the fox.

Leading her around the trunk of the tree he had waited behind, she was met with a spread out blanket on the grass.

Bowles, plates, a thermos bottle with what smelled like coffee as well as some candles and a small vase with flowers were placed on it, just waiting for the two mammals to sit down and enjoy.

"What is all this?" Judy asked, still not able to wrap her head around what was going on.

"What does it look like, Fluff? I prepared us a picnic. Come, sit down." Nick patted a spot right next to where he had already settled on the blanket.  
Sitting down beside him, her eyes never left his face even when the tod started to put food on her plate. She didn't hear a word he said about what he had prepared for them and when his eyes met hers, the fox paused, his ears laying back against his head.

"I thought I wouldn't see you today," Judy stated with glassy eyes, her voice slightly trembling.

Putting down the plate he was holding, the reynard folded his paws in his lap to keep them from fidgeting nervously, what was already a rarity for him.

"I'm really sorry about that, Judy. I thought it would be a nice idea to surprise you with all this. That's why I asked my mom to get you out of the apartment. I had actually clocked out earlier than usual to prepare this. I guess I shouldn't have done it after all."

"That's not it!" The bunny shook her head, still baffled by the tod's use of her real name. "It's a wonderful surprise. Really. But.. but I wished we could have spent more time together today." She felt her cheeks heat up at admitting it.

"Me too," Nick agreed, his ears slightly raising again.

"Then why-"

"But I needed some time to prepare myself, too. Not just the food."

A moment of silence passed between them.

"What do you mean?" the doe finally inquired.

Scratching the back of his head, Nick briefly averted his eyes before focusing back on her.

"Well, today _is_ Valentine's after all," he replied, "And..." Judy felt a soft touch when the fox hesitantly put his paw on hers, giving it the slightest squeeze, "... years spend as a hustler might have taught me how to hide my emotions and play a role, but they also made it a lot more difficult for me to open up to a certain grey bunny that is far too important to me to not show her what I honestly feel."

Squeezing Nick's paw in return, Judy slightly raised herself from the ground and pressed a soft kiss to the corner of his lips before leaning against him, her head coming to rest against his chest.

"I see," was her only spoken response to his words, but it was all she needed to say for the tod to comprehend that she understood.

Slowly wrapping his arms around the doe, Nick embraced her, resting his nose between her ears while trying to calm down his rapidly beating heart.

"You are not angry with me?" The whispered question tickled the bunny's ears, causing them to flick once and drawing a soft chuckle from her.

"I should be," she answered after a moment, causing the reynard to tense up. "Really, I should be mad at you. But I'm not. I can see that it took a lot of courage for you to do this." Feeling like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders, Nick relaxed again.

 _Though something is still missing,_ Judy thought to herself.

But not wanting to put pressure on Nick, she decided she could wait at least until after they had eaten.

With a happy sigh, she leaned away from the fox, looking him in the eyes with a fond expression and suggested to do just that.

Night had started to fall around them by the time they had finished, and Nick had packed up everything except for the blanket they were still sitting on. Judy sidled closer to the fox, cuddling into his side. After a moment, the tod wrapped his arm around her, eliciting a happy chirr from the bunny.

"So you roped your mom in to keep me away from our place?"

Looking quite embarrassed by the sudden question, Nick shifted on his spot slightly.

"Yeah. I told her I wanted to surprise you since... you know, since it's Valentine's and all. She wasn't too happy about it."

His last words made Judy's ears shoot up and brought a sorrowful expression to her face.

"Oh... I hoped she supported us since she did all this and-"

"No! Don't get me wrong, Fluff. She isn't against _us_. Quite the opposite, honestly. She just wasn't too thrilled about my plan. And with good reason, I guess."

The knowledge that Vivian did indeed encourage them dating reassured the bunny and caused her content smile to return.

"Ol' Buffalo Butt on the other paw, though..." Nick stated.

"Yeah, Chief Bogo played along with that," Judy couldn't resist rolling her eyes, a laugh escaping her at the sheer absurdity of the thought.

But when Nick didn't react to that, the doe's eyes widened in disbelief.

"Wait, are you serious? That means he put me on vacation today to help you? Why in cabbage's name would he do that?" The incredulity carried by her voice was almost palpable.

"Oh, that was actually quite easy," the tod chuckled, "weird enough but he seemed quite eager to help out and when I promised to refrain from playing any pranks on him for the next three months he even almost _smiled_."

"And he just trusted you to stick to your word?" Judy couldn't bring herself to believe the Chief was that naive.

When answering, Nick looked slightly miffed. "I have no choice. If I should go against my word, there will be parking duty. Lots of parking duty. And desk work," he admitted.

"As if that had ever stopped you," the bunny teased.

"True. But it would be _you_ who would be punished with that... for the rest of the year... with me still being out on the streets working cases. And not even _I_ am so crazy as to risk my life like that."

When there came no reply from the doe, Nick turned to face her. Spotting the dangerous spark in her eyes, he quickly lifted his free paw in a pacifying manner. "Don't you worry, Carrots. I'll behave, I swear."

"You better do," Judy gave off an aggravated huff; a warning to her fox that she wouldn't take kindly to it if she should bear the brunt of the cape buffalo's ire.

Though the next moment she snuggled back up against the reynard, intend on enjoying their closeness a little longer before they would leave.

What brought her back to her earlier thought.

"Nick?"

"Yes?"

"I guess we will head home soon, right? So isn't there something you still need to tell me? A certain something I think I deserve to hear after all this?"

She could feel the heat rising to her ears and cheeks and waited with bated breath for the tod's answer.

Nick tensed up at that, but only for a second. His arm which was slung around the doe moved a little, his paw cupping hers and giving it another light squeeze, this time with fondness instead of insecurity.

"You are right, Fluff. But...

"... but what?" Judy asked, curious what could still be holding the tod back after he already knew she forgave him and felt the same way about him.

"We are not going home yet." A light smirk appeared on the fox's face.

"Okay, what have you pl-" the doe paused when the night around them suddenly deepened.  
Looking up from the reynard's face - where her eyes had rested on his, trying to figure out what he might be scheming - she found the city to be darker than she had ever seen it.  
The windows of most buildings were black, and while watching, more and more lights switched off or got trapped inside by rolling shutters.  
Even the neon signs and illuminated advertising went dark.

Confusion and marvel crossed the bunny's face. In the end, the only sources of light that remained were the street lamps and the occasional, lit window.

Zootopia gave off the feeling of a city that had fallen asleep.

"What happened? How did you do this?"

A soft laugh escaped the reynard's lips before he pulled Judy closer, pressing a small kiss between her ears that charmed a tooth purr from the doe.

"I'm honored by the vote of confidence, but that was not my doing. I'm a little surprised you haven't picked up on it. I mean, I know you are not the biggest fan of those social media platforms, but even so, I halfway expected you to hear about it, even if just from one of your siblings."

Feeling more bewildered than before and even slightly annoyed by how Nick tiptoed around answering her, she leaned away from him, looking him straight in the face.

"Would you be so kind as to finally tell me what's going on?"  
Despite the fact that she sounded entirely unamused, Judy didn't raise her voice, feeling reluctant to break the tranquil atmosphere that had settled in.

"The meteor shower," Nick simply replied.

Staring at the fox like he told her he was about to grow a second tail, Judy needed a moment to come up with an appropriate answer to that.

"You actually think I believe there will be a meteor shower on Valentine's of all days and that the city turned off almost all the lights so that mammals can watch it?"

While the bunny was talking, Nick's smirk grew in width and intensity.

"It wasn't the city that decided on it; it was an idea that had gone viral over the internet. Everyone who could were to turn off all the lights possible. And it seemed most mammals did and apparently, even most of the companies decided to allow turning of their advertisement for this occasion," he explained while watching the rabbit's doubt slowly melt.

"And for the probability of this event to happen today."  
Instead of finishing his sentence, the tod simply lifted his free paw, pointing a claw up into the sky.

Following his outstretched arm with her eyes, Judy's gaze slowly traveled upwards until she couldn't see anything besides the velvety, dark blue blanket of the night sky, sprinkled over and over with twinkling, shining stars, glowing brighter than she had ever seen them in Zootopia.

But more than that, shooting stars were crossing above them, so many she couldn't possibly count them.

Her eyes went wide like a kit's and a very soft-spoken 'wow' escaped her slightly agape muzzle.

Like on cue a violin started to play somewhere below them and moments later a clear, female voice joined the tune.

"Starry, starry night  
Paint your palette blue and gray  
Look out on a summer's day  
With eyes that know the darkness in my soul  
Shadows on the hills  
Sketch the trees and the daffodils  
Catch the breeze and the winter chills..."

Ears pinpointing the source of the music, Judy turned in the direction it came from.

Down by the pond, there were some candles set up on the ground in a semicircle, their gentle shine illuminating two mammals which stood by the water.

One of them, a male gnu, played the violin while a female leopard was singing along to the tender melody.  
Behind them, the starlit sky was reflected in the still waters of the pond, making it appear as if they were standing right at the edge of the universe.

The whole atmosphere stole Judy's breath and gave her goosebumps, causing her fur to puff out to the point where it was almost bristling.

A light touch to her cheek made her turn towards the fox next to her.  
Nick's paw had gently cupped her face, and the fond, loving expression he regarded her with set her heart aflutter and made her chest feel tight.

When he started to lean forward slowly, she closed her eyes, and when his lips softly brushed against hers, it was like electricity rushed through her body.

She didn't know how long their first kiss lasted before Nick broke it.

Opening her eyes, she stared directly into his emerald ones, and the happiness from having him right there by her side caused her tears to well up.

Tears which spilled as he finally told her "I love you, Judy."

Putting her paws on his cheeks, she gently moved his muzzle closer to hers until their lips met for the second time.

As the last note faded away into silence, their second kiss ended, leaving both mammals dazed with fast-beating hearts.

"I love you, too, you dumb, sweet, romantic fox," she finally replied.

Looking into her upturned eyes, Nick saw the cosmic dance above them reflected and wondered if he should dare wish upon the shooting stars, feeling like asking for more than he already got might jinx it.

When he realized that Judy had started to shiver since the night was still bearing some cold and the jacket she had thrown on was not shielding her much against it, he proposed to head home.

But the doe merely shook her head.

"Not yet. Let's stay a little longer, please."

Unable to say no to his bunny, especially not when she was inching closer to him, looking for some warmth, the tod let go of her.

Judy was about to protest upon the sudden cold when he drew away, but simply tilted her head a little in confusion when he opened his jacket.

At first, she assumed he wanted to give it to her. That was until Nick picked her up and placed her in his lap, the doe's back to his chest. Closing his jacket left only the bunny's head sticking out, her beat red ears framing his face, barely contrasting with the fox's red fur.

"Seriously, Nick, don't you think that's embarrassing?" the flustered doe asked in a whisper.

"Maybe. But it's warm, isn't it?" the reynard replied, resting his muzzle on top of her head.

He couldn't see the smile that tucked at Judy's lips, but he felt her relax against him and sensed how she turned her head to the side and upwards to nuzzle him slightly under the chin, making his heart skip a beat.

"Mhh, maybe," the doe said with a content hum.

Both mammals' eyes were drawn back to the sky, still enthralled by the spectacle the universe presented to them.

And both young lovers silently wished the wishes they would still remember decades after that, looking back fondly at this special day, and marveling how they could have been so fortunate to have met, fallen in love and lived their lives side by side. 

* * *

**A/N:**  
This marks the third story I have ever written for Zootopia and the second one I have posted so far.  
And while I don't particularly like Valentine's, I couldn't stop thinking about this story until I finally wrote it down. I hope you had been able to enjoy it.  
I know it's not as long as 'Gift-Wrapped Heart' was, but I wanted to try writing something shorter than that without losing in detail and meaning. So... don't hesitate in giving me feedback. Just stay polite, please :-)  
Also, I want to thank my good friend Quakky once more for proofreading. He pointed out some grammar mistakes as well as prodding me to rework some parts of it. I'm actually quite happy with how it turned out in the end. ^^  
With that, I wish all of you a happy, lovely Valentines ;-)


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